I am the trustee of a small complex of condos. We just had someone go thru a shortsale. No matter what-always have your own people inspect the condo-even if it is brand new. Always see and read the condo docs carefully before buying. Many realtors don't tell you that it is a good idea to see them in case there is anything you can't live with. Speak with neighbors and find out if maintenance is done regularly and if pros do it. Find out how much money they have in the reserve account. If they don't have one I would steer clear. Find out the condo fee and perhaps get a copy of the annual meeting minutes-that will tell you what issues are recent. You can also get copies of bank statements which will tell you a lot about what they spend money on. If the don't have minutes or an agenda from the annual meeting I would also steer clear because management doesn't know what they are doing.

We had mold in one of our units just before a short sale. Our guy did it and found there was very little mold after all and it was a lot less expensive that originally thought. I think the mold inspector was also a mitigator and wanted to make some money. The association had to repair it right away and were responsible for it because it was in an exterior wall and not do to any actions of the owners. I wouldn't be worried about the mold as long as you have your own people do the work. $1300 shouldn't be a big deal for the Association to come up with if they have a reserve fund. But they may not be responsible for the problem. Good Luck!... more